Tarkin Endorses Cursed Horror Stars
Practically minutes after watching Ken Russell’s Gothic, I was invited to attend the screening of another horror classic at the Castle Keep. This time it was Der Golem, a 96 year old silent movie from Germany’s influential expressionist period of the 1920s.
Der Golem was directed by Paul Weggener, who also played the title role, and is based on the Jewish legend of a clay man created by a rabbi. To say the film has dated is something of an understatement, but this unique effort still has the power to fascinate with its magnificent sets and Weggener’s powerful performance. More importantly it inspired James Whale when he directed his 1931 classic Frankenstein. For added power Noize Choir provided a live soundtrack that captured the emotion of the film. And of course the screening at the castle added to the atmosphere of the night.
The following week I was invited to attend the Metro Unleashed movie convention at the Lancastrian Suite in Gateshead. It was very much a last minute thing and as I only had a few books left, I got a free stall. Once again I was surrounded by fans of Star Trek,Star Wars, Dr Who and Game of Thrones so the costumes were amazing. In addition to seeing loads of stormtroopers, I met the Death Star commander himself, Grand Moff Tarkin! True to his word he has endorsed Cursed Horror Stars and promised to buy copies for both Emperor Palpertine and Darth Vader. The Force is strong in my book!
In addition to taking in the atmosphere of Metro Unleashed, I met two lovely lady writers who specialised in werewolf fantasy. Wonderful to meet you Natalie Gosney and Sarah Elliott.
All in all memorable day. Thanks to the organisers for having me on board!
Unless another last minute convention comes along, I’ll be taking a break to gear myself up for two very important events. Firstly my long awaited trip to the writers’ retreat in Swanwick, Derbyshire (my first as a published author), followed by my guest appearance at the Whitley Bay Film Festival, which I’ll explain more about in my next blog. Both are in August and promise to be amazing.
Note to self: order more books!
